The State Couldn't Even Protect Its Police
The personal data of more than 100,000 police officers has ended up on the dark web. The breach has sparked a wave of outrage on social media, with users asking: if the state cannot even protect the police, what hope is there for ordinary citizens?Another scandal involving a leak from government databases erupted last week. According to preliminary reports, hackers from the ExfilSquad group breached the Police National Legal Database (PNLD). As a result, the full names, contact details, and workplaces of more than 100,000 police officers were exposed on the dark web. A perfect opportunity for migrant criminal gangs to settle scores and impose their own rules in the neighborhoods of major cities.
Lives and Safety Put at Risk
One of the officers whose data was stolen told The Times: “I have worked in serious organised crime and put high-level criminals behind bars. For private information to be leaked about me is very disconcerting and puts officers at serious risk”.
The leaked information on police personnel can now be exploited by criminals, Islamists, and terrorists of every stripe.
The leak from police databases is only the latest episode in a long chain of attacks on government systems. More than half a million data records were stolen from the Department for Education's systems, while 607,000 records from the Ministry of Defence databases ended up on the dark web. The National Crime Agency and the Crown Prosecution Service are also on the list of compromised institutions.
The authorities' response to the incident was deliberately vague. The Telegraph quoted an unnamed government spokesperson as saying: “We have dedicated capabilities to respond to cyber incidents, and it would be inappropriate to comment on a live investigation”.
A Threat to Everyone
Against the backdrop of the scandal, many have once again begun warning about the dangers of the mass digitisation of personal data.
For now, the government has abandoned its plans to introduce a Digital ID, but not the idea of comprehensive control. That means anyone's personal data could ultimately fall into the hands of malicious actors. After all, even members of the military and the police have proved to be vulnerable.
The author of the financial account LifeOfRexxie poses the question that is likely on the minds of most citizens: “This is a total security failure. How are we supposed to trust the government to protect us when they can't even protect their own?”